Ketchikan seaplane tours are floatplane flights that take off from the Tongass Narrows beside the town. You fly over the fjords east of town in about two hours, or to a bear platform on Prince of Wales Island in three. You hear the pilot through a headset. Most are non-refundable, so read the terms before you book.
A floatplane off the Tongass Narrows for about two hours over Misty Fjords, with a window seat and headset narration. Every passenger's weight is asked at booking, 300 pounds at most.
From $349 per person
Free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead.
A DeHavilland Otter or Beaver over the fjords for 1.5 hours, then 20 minutes down on a lake or inlet. You walk a ramp and climb a ladder to board. Non-refundable.
From $470 per person
Non-refundable: no refund and no changes once booked.
Forty minutes each way over the Inside Passage to Polk Inlet, then a short walk to a bear-viewing platform with your guide. From age 13, two per booking at least; non-refundable.
From $575 per person
Non-refundable: no refund and no changes once booked.
Misty Fjords in about two hours, window seat guaranteed, full refund up to 24 hours ahead.
Check availability from $349A seaplane here is a floatplane: a small aircraft on floats that takes off from and lands on the water. Ketchikan's floatplanes use the Tongass Narrows beside the town, so you are in the air minutes after you leave the dock. Every flight here is a floatplane; none is a helicopter tour.
The flights go one of two ways. Misty Fjords, the wilderness east of town, is a sightseeing flight of about two hours. Polk Inlet on Prince of Wales Island is a bear-viewing trip of three hours, with 40 minutes in the air each way.
Misty Fjords' western edge is 22 miles from town and Polk Inlet is across the Inside Passage. By floatplane each fits inside a port day with room to spare.
You look down on granite walls, lakes and forested islands, from a guaranteed window seat on the Misty Fjords flights. A headset lets you hear the pilot on every flight.
Every Misty Fjords flight carries an all-aboard guarantee in writing. The bear flight collects you from meeting points in central Ketchikan.
One Misty Fjords flight sets down on a lake or inlet for 20 minutes, and you step out onto the floats. The bear flight lands at Polk Inlet so you can walk to the platform.
Most visitors weigh a flight against a whale or wildlife boat. The flight costs more, and reaches further.
| A seaplane tour | A whale or wildlife boat | |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | Misty Fjords or Prince of Wales Island | The Tongass Narrows and nearby passages |
| Time | 2 to 3 hours | 2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours 45 minutes |
| Fare | $349 to $575 a person | $178 to $209 a person |
| Cancellation | Most are non-refundable | All refundable up to 24 hours |
| Weather | Cloud can ground a flight | Boats go out in rain |
| Boarding | A dock ramp and a ladder | From a dock |
If you have one expensive morning to spend, a Misty Fjords flight shows you what no boat here reaches. If rain is forecast or your budget is tight, a whale boat is the surer trip.
Fares run from $349 to $575 a person. Book as soon as your port day is fixed, and choose the refundable Misty Fjords flight if it might not be. Each flight confirms within 48 hours, so do not book one the night before.
Have your weights ready: the flight without a landing asks every passenger's weight at booking, up to 300 pounds. Wear shoes you can climb a ladder in. The bear flight keeps strollers at the operator's office while you fly, and its staff help passengers with limited mobility where they can.
A flight is weather-dependent, and it has been called off in midsummer. If the forecast is low cloud, have a backup: the Ketchikan whale watching tours sail in rain.
If you use a wheelchair, none of the flights is marked accessible. If you have back problems or are pregnant, the flight without a landing is not recommended. If you are travelling with under-13s, the bear flight will not take them, and the Neets Bay bear trip by boat takes children from five. And if you are not sure of your day, book only the refundable flight.
Forty minutes each way to Polk Inlet and a guided walk to the Forest Service bear-viewing platform.
Check availability from $575Next: the Misty Fjords flights side by side on Misty Fjords tours, and the cloud by month on Ketchikan weather. Every tour sits side by side on Ketchikan Alaska Tours.